


Flashpoint: Talimance

by Red Centurion (RedCenturionG)



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Comfort, Drabbles, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Humor, Hurt, Romance, Snapshots, Wit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-09
Updated: 2018-04-22
Packaged: 2019-04-20 13:52:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14262408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedCenturionG/pseuds/Red%20Centurion
Summary: Snapshots in the life of John Shepard and Tali'Zorah vas Normandy, from friendship to romance, from hardship to happiness, from life to death. Request-based drabbles. Read intro (first chapter) for rules on making requests.





	1. Introduction and Rules

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laying down the rules.

_Welcome to Flashpoint._

  
_This is going to be something unique, and seperate from FABT. A breather, if you will. I was inspired by other one-shots and drabble-based fics I've reread recently (specifically Media Firestorm and Snippets), and thought: why not?_

  
_Just like those stories, this will be request-based. You guys give me requests for what you want me to do, and I'll write a chapter based on that concept. You don't need to be ultra specific, but just don't be too broad: nothing like "have Shepard and Tali be romantic". I need specifics. This will largely be fluff, but I'm open to anything really, which includes darkness and angst. And, as you probably guessed, it has to be a Tali/Shepard pairing. It also doesn't have to be romance-specific, and some friendship requests are also acceptable._

  
_Now, some ground rules:_

  
_First of all, if you're going to suggest smut, NOTHING overtly explicit or disgusting. Any requests of this nature will be ignored. Smut must also supplement a bigger concept, and not be the concept in and of itself (eg. don't go "have Shepard and Tali have sex", have "Shepard and Tali do (insert activity here), that leads to sex")._

  
_Secondly, the concept can't be too broad or revolve around a large plot. Keep it simple. A simple event or activity. I WILL NOT be writing FABT level chapters when it comes to word length. Very much under 5,000 words._

  
_Thirdly, if I feel that you are requesting something that is OOC (out of character), then I will either a) not do it or request a new concept or b) change the concept to make the character more in character. Keep this in mind._

  
_Fourthly, these are drabbles. Short one-shots. With that in mind, remember that my update schedule is not laid out. I'll update where and when I can, but my main focus is still FABT. Please remember that._

  
_With that said, welcome to the spiritual successor to Snippets by Synweaver. I hope you enjoy it, and we'll see where this goes. With that said, leave your suggestions in the reviews and let's get crackin'!_

  
_Keelah Re'lai, troopers!_


	2. Snapshot 1: That Damnable Shirt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shepard reminds Tali that she's worth every minute of his time.

_**Well, here you go The Emerald Commander. Its not exactly what you asked for, but the majority of the prompt is intact here. Enjoy.** _

* * *

  
It had all started with that damn shirt.

  
Yes, a _shirt_.

  
It had been a simple day, all things considered...well, as simple as things could be on a ship embarking on a suicide mission. She had been working in engineering, the quarian finding herself right at home when she was tinkering around within the stealth frigate's high-tech contours. She was still finding it a bit hard to believe she was working on a Cerberus vessel, but the crew had been nice enough to her, and Donnelly and Daniels hadn't said a word of criticism regarding her _de facto_ leadership of the engine room. For that, she was thankful. It certainly made her job easier.

  
Of course, she was only here because of Shepard.

  
The last few weeks had seen quite the change in Tali, mostly for the better. In the two years since Shepard's death, Tali had never felt so alone. His death had affected her more deeply than she thought, tearing her apart like an emotional maelstrom. A parasite that constantly gnawed away at her emotional core, consuming her in its ubiquitous spread. She had tried everything to move on: seperating herself from her friends, returning to the Migrant Fleet and burying herself in work, dedicating her life to the Fleet...nothing had worked. For the first few weeks, she cried herself to sleep every night. But as the months crawled on, tears turned into nightmares and nightmares into sleeplessness. And all of that before Shepard had admitted his feelings for her.

  
So when he finally did, only a few weeks ago, the floodgates had come crashing open. The possibilities were now endless: Tali wasn't alone in her feelings anymore. She could finally let him know how she felt without fear of being rejected. Out of all the people he could have chosen, he _chose her_. To say she was both excited, nervous and terrified all at once would be grossly understating how she felt at the moment. As far as she was concerned, she was the happiest woman in the galaxy right now. And the luckiest. The great Commander Shepard, Lion of Elysium, Butcher of Torfan, Survivor of Akuze and Hero of the Citadel...chose a quarian for his girlfriend.

  
Which is why it was all the more ridiculous that her happiness, her bouts of giddiness, had to be stalled by something as simple as a _shirt_.

  
She was in his... _their_...cabin, having just finished her shift in engineering. His shift wouldn't be over for at least another half an hour, so she decided to simply open her omni-tool and a play a game of solitaire: it was a human game that Shepard had introduced her to, and she had found herself more than a little addicted to it. She had never been particularly great at card games, but considering her recent loss of a game of poker to Shepard, Donnelly and Daniels, she was eager to get good at it. Solitaire was a good start.

  
He had arrived half an hour later, just as he had promised. And that's when it happened.

  
He had walked through the door, wearing his usual attire: a simple black shirt with N7 embroidened on the left breast, with a pair of fatigues held up by a belt buckle. He wore a blue and black cap on his forehead, the logo of the SAMC implanted upon it. His beard was clean shaven to remain within Alliance regulations, despite technically not being in the Alliance military anymore. He had refused to wear the Cerberus officer's uniform provided for him upon getting the _Normandy_ , confiding in Tali and Garrus (pretty much the only people from the original _Normandy_ he could trust implicitly, a fact Tali took great pride in) that he refused to allow Cerberus to dress him in their uniform and 'parade him around like their poster child.' Tali had offered to loan him a grenade for when he chose to blow up Cerberus, and he had jokingly told her 'keep it handy.'

  
Right off the bat, as Tali turned to him with a warm smile on her face, she knew something was wrong. He was awkwardly batting at his shirt, groaning in annoyance as he held a black steel mug in one hand, piping hot steam wafting from the cup. Tali immediately recognized as 'coffee', a human drink that had apparently taken the galaxy by storm when it was introduced to the community following the First Contact War. And it just happened to be Commander Shepard's preferred poison.

  
Raising an eyebrow at his rather odd predicament, she stood up from the sofa and ascended the three small steps into the cabin's atrium, "Are you okay, John?"

  
She liked calling him by his first name. It was a priviledge he had practically enforced upon her, as he felt that it was wrong for her to continue calling him 'Shepard' when they were openly in a relationship. Besides, he insisted that his name sounded good in her voice, something she had been reluctant to object to.

  
He looked up at her, smiling as her suited form came into view. Her presence seemed to have that calming effect on him, something she had never failed to take notice of, "Nah...its fine, Tali. Just split my coffee all over my shirt. Its stupid. I'll...I'll just go get changed."

  
And just like that, he placed the half empty cup of coffee on the edge of his desk, reached up under his shirt, and pulled it off. He crumbled it into a ball and tossed it aside, allowing Tali a full, unobstructed view of his well defined chest. Shepard was by no means a monster when it came to muscles, but being an N7 and someone who liked to exercise constantly, he had enough to make any woman drool at the sight of him. Most of the time, Tali would be doing just that, biting back her urge to reach forward and explore his abdomen, with her three-fingered hands tracing along the lines of muscle rippling his chest.

  
But this time, she found, for some stupid reason, that all she could focus on was just how easily and carelessly Shepard had exposed himself. He tore his shirt off and tossed it away, as if it was a non-issue. He simply plucked another one from his wardrobe, letting it fall past his neck and wrap neatly around his torso, stealing her view of his chest away from her. It had been done with such ease...so non-chalantly. It was a simple act, but it resonated within her.

  
The thought hit her mind before she could stop it. _I wish I could take off my suit that easily_.

  
"Tali?" John's thoughts penetrated the cloud in her mind, causing her to violently cast them aside as she refocused on reality, finding his eyes gazing into hers as he continued to smile, believing he had found her oggling him again, "Am I really that distracting?"

  
_No, not at all. Unless you count flaunting your freedom in front of me 'distracting', of course_.

  
She meekly shook her head, slowly turning to walk back down the stairs, suddenly unable to face him. Her mind raced through a million different thoughts, but found that one was now nagging at her, refusing to withdraw until its underlying purpose was fullfilled. She suddenly became very self-aware, realizing just how stupid she had been.

  
_I'm wearing a suit. I can't so much as show off a fragment of skin or I could die. A single kiss could put me in the hospital. I can't eat or drink without it first being sterilized. And yet this human, this hero, wants to waste his time with a quarian whose face he can't even see and whose skin he can't even touch. He deserves to be with someone who can fullfill him. Besides, how could he possibly understand what it's like to be a quarian? He doesn't understand the struggle. He can remove his clothing without a problem. He doesn't have to worry about dying by simply removing a shirt. A single, damn **shirt**._

  
"Tali?" his tone was less playful this time around, concern laced throughout his voice. She ignored him, plopping herself down on the couch as she dropped her hands into her lap, fingers interlacing and twisting together nervously. She felt a stray tear fall down her cheek before she could control herself, eyes beginning to water up painfully, the salty liquid stinging her eyelids. Of course, Shepard couldn't see that because of her stupid, opaque mask, her building sorrow hidden carefully away, allowing her to bask in her own misery, her commander entirely oblivious. _Its not...fair..._

  
A shadow fell over her, but she didn't look up. The couch indented on her right as Shepard placed himself next to her. To his credit, he didn't wrap his arm around her like she had expected him to, apparently having realized that something was wrong but knowing enough to restrict himself until he knew she was ready.

  
He cleared his throat quietly, clearly confused as to what had gone wrong. Tali felt for him: after all, it wasn't his fault. Well, technically it was because he was the source of her doubt, but at the same time, he wasn't at fault because he hadn't known what he was doing to her, "What's wrong? Was it something I said?"

  
She lifted her head from aimlessly staring at her lap, finally garnering enough courage to look him in the eyes, "I...k-know, its...its...not your fault. John...I'm sorry. But this...we can't..."

  
He nodded in confirmation, sighing as he removed his cap, placing it gently next to him, but he never so much as took his eyes off of her. He adopted a serious tone as he cautiously placed a hand on her thigh, testing the waters. She allowed it, secretly closing her eyes and relishing the feel of his warm hand through the suit. How she wished it could be touching her actual skin. For now however, the gesture was comforting. It was already beginning to make her feel slightly better, although not by much.

"We can't what, Tali?" he asked, sounding very worried now, "You can tell me."

  
"My suit," she blurted out, taking him by surprise with her immediate, sudden response, "Watching you take off that shirt like it was nothing...it made me realize something. I can never give you what you want. You get a coffee stain on your shirt and you can simply switch it for another one. No problem for you. But if that was to happen to my suit...I'd have to bear with it, or hope my _realk_ is the one that gets stained...at least I can remove _that_."

  
"And?" he asked, frowning at her, "And you getting a stained suit means you can't give me what I want?"

  
"Yes!" she nearly shouted, finding herself pivoting on the couch to face him, "I'm..." she waved her hands down her form, indicating to him that he was referring to her suit, "...trapped! I'll never be able to leave this suit no matter how much I want to...and you deserve more than that. More than what I can give you. I was being stupid and selfish to ever suggest we could...have something more. You shouldn't feel guilt-tripped into being with me," more tears travelled down her cheek, and she fought back the urge to sob.

  
_This is the for the best._

  
Before she could say anything else, he...began to laugh.

  
That surprised her. _How...how could he be **laughing?** Is this just a joke to him? How could he possibly find this funny?_

  
She waited for him to finish laughing, glaring at him with incredulosity. Suddenly however, and to her shock, he reached up and grasped her shoulders sturdily. Her tears stopped flowing as he fixed her with a firm gaze, all mirth gone from his face as he seemed to study her astutely. All she could do was meet his warm, welcoming blue stare, finding herself sinking away into his sweet gaze. She quickly paid full attention to him, finding herself unable to turn away.

  
"Tali, that is the most _ridiculous_ reason for self doubt I've _ever heard_ ," he stated, John fading away to be replaced temporarily by Commander Shepard, her human captain, "I don't care that you're stuck in a suit. What, do you think I haven't noticed you were in a suit? Do you think I'm stupid?"

  
She opened her lips to mouth a response, but her voice and mind yielded none. She stuttered for a moment, trying to form a proper, coherent sentence, "Well I...no, I don't think you're stupid, I-I just..."

  
One of his hands was rubbing her arm, causing her shuddering to crawl to a stop, although she didn't know if he had been doing it intentionally, or if it was something more subconscious, "Then why, Tali? Why this sudden doubt? I laughed because of all the things to make you question where you stand, it had to be taking my _shirt off_. Do you honestly think I'd be with you if I was looking for someone I just wanted to have sex with?"

  
Well, at least he was blatant about it. He certainly held nothing back. Such was the propensity of the statement that she couldn't even stutter a word of retaliation, simply sitting there pathetically as she listened to him berate her.

  
"I want to be with you because I care about you. Because I feel the same about you," the hand rubbing her shoulder lifted, cupping her cheek gently. Despite herself, her self-restraint slipped just enough for her to lean into the gesture, nudging his hand as she seemingly tried to dive into the warmth radiating off of it, "Do I really seem the kind of person to be pathetic enough to be with you out of guilt? Do you really think so low of me that its easy for you to believe that bullshit?"

  
"I..." she knew this was an argument she couldn't win. She'd dug her own grave, as the human saying went, and now she had to lie in it. No response she tried to form was good enough, her analytical mind picking them apart before she could even think of wording them. In the end, her shoulders slumped, letting John know he had won. But it hardly felt like a victory, "...no. Of course. You're the most wonderful, caring man I've ever known. And...well, I just want you to be happy..."

  
He smiled, hand on her cheek reaching around to gently stroke the back of her hood, Tali letting out a low coo at the commiseration, leaning forward slightly as she desperately wanted to give into his assurances. Luckily for her, he didn't give her much of a choice, taking note of her movement and calmly and tenderly bringing her into his arms. She surrendered willfully, and he tucked her head against his chest, arms wrapping around her and holding her benignly.

  
He continued to idly stroke her hood, whispering sweet certitudes into her auditory emulators as he simply held her, letting the silence between them do the talking. A few minutes must have passed, but they felt like hours that they just cuddled. After a while, he stopped whispering altogether, respecting her need for quiet. She had closed her eyes, simply listening to his steady heartbeat thumping through his chest, the feeling like miniature tapping. The sound made her tired, and she swore she could have fallen asleep here, all tucked up against his chest, nothing but the sound of his heartbeat and light breathing to sustain her.

  
Suddenly, John spoke, Commander Shepard put to sleep as the man she loved emerged, cradling her as if he was afraid letting her go would cause her to disappear, his voice soft and polite, " _You_ make me happy...that's why I chose you. Not Ashley. Not Liara. Not Miranda. You. I've only ever loved you, Tali. I'm...just glad to know you feel the same."

  
She tugged at his new shirt, this one a cobalt blue Alliance themed tee, with one of her fingers, smoothing her palm over the soft material. She took a deep breath, eyes still closed, before opening them, rolling herself over so she could place her head in his lap, looking up at him while her body was oriented away from him. She folded her hands in her lap, letting a low smile crease her lips, "I...I know. Thank you, John...I was being so stupid. I just...keelah, I _hate_ this suit." She picked at one of her suit straps, emphasizing her point.

  
To her surprise, John didn't answer immediately, cocking his head at her. He opened his mouth, but closed it again as he thought through what he was going to say. A few seconds later, after he had composed himself, he spoke again, "Tali...tell me about your suit."

  
Now _that_ caught her attention. She simply hadn't expected him to ask such an out-of-the-blue question, "My...my suit? W-what d-d-do you mean?" She wished she could stop stuttering, but the question had come completely out of left field.

  
He shrugged, a small smile licking at the right side of his mouth, "I guess...it just seems like your society places a lot of emphasis on your suits. When we were at the Migrant Fleet to help with your trial, I noticed Shala'Raan mentioned placing your children in environmental bubbles...that you only got your suits when you're of adolescence."

  
The quarian in his arms continued to fiddle with one of the straps on her suit, finding herself frowning underneath her mask as she considered her next words carefully, "The suits...they practically _are_ us. Our suits are like a second skin...in the three hundred years we've been wearing them, I don't think my generation or the generation before me could remember a time where we haven't worn them."

  
"That...sounds sad," John mumbled, fixing her with a somewhat melancholic stare, "I mean...it sounds like your lives are pretty much defined by them. You make it seem like you're nothing without it."

  
That just caused Tali to laugh slightly, although she found no humor in what he said, her only amusement stemming from the bitter truth of what he said, "Because we're not. If I take off this suit, even for a bit, I'll die. Everything that you take for granted...touching flowers with bare fingers, kissing someone you love, eating something without having to sterilize it, feel another's body pressed against yours...I can't do that. Everything I do has to be..." she held up her hands in the air, sighing wistfully, "...within this. My _prison_ , my _sanctuary_."

  
"Its also keeping you alive," he pointed out, squeezing her arms ever so carefully.

  
"But can't you see why I can't be with you?" the quarian whimpered, feeling her chest tighten once more as she felt tears begin to form in her eyes once more, stinging them with their presence, "This suit...it will always be between us. The only way for us to be together...its...keelah, its _risky_. I could get sick, and _jeopardize_ the mission. A single kiss and I could be in the infirmary for the rest of the mission."

  
A stray finger ghosted across her visor, before landing on her left cheek, cupping it upside down as he craned her head to look up at him. He spoke, his tone a gentle caress that could have lulled her to sleep on its existence alone, "...but there _is_ a way?"

  
She slowly nodded, gulping, "I...I can speak with Mordin...get some herbal supplements, antibiotics and antihistamines that...could temporarily bolster my immune system. It would...allow me to _be_ with you...no suit. But I would still get sick. How sick, I don't know..."

  
He frowned, although it looked to be more out of concern for her wellbeing than frustration, "That sounds awfully risky. Are you sure you want that? I wouldn't mind if we...just had this. I don't care about your damn suit. If it meant I wasn't jeopardizing your health or your safety, then I would gladly set aside my-"

  
Tali just scoffed, waving a dismissive hand, "Keelah John, you think I'm doing _all of this_ just for you?" she reached up, her gloved palm grazing past his naked cheek and causing him to hum pleasantly. She smiled warmly, glad she could impart some comfort upon him just from a simple touch, "I...want this to be real. I don't want some stupid nerve stim program. I want to feel your skin on mine...and if I have to risk sickness for that, I will. I just don't know if you-"

  
A finger landed on her vocalizer, and she fell quiet. She knew he couldn't actually silence her through that method, but it was the principle that counted, "Tali, you know me. I want to be with you. If this is what you want...I'll wait as long as I need to. I may not understand what its like to live your whole life in a suit, but if I can help you explore all that you've been missing, then I will. All those things I take for granted? I want you to have that. I want to see your face...and that's something well worth fighting for, and waiting for."

  
_Keelah... **now** I remember why I love this man._

  
_What was I afraid of again?_

  
He chuckled slightly, a grin gracing his lips, "But when the time comes, please don't ask me to make a sculpture out of my...well, main gun."

  
It took her a few seconds for her innocent mind to figure out exactly what he meant.

  
There was a gasp, followed by a loud slapping sound as John shouted.

  
"Ow!"

  
"You _bosh'tet_!"

 

_...but he can also be an insufferable bosh'tet sometimes!_

* * *

  
_**Well, its not the best thing ever, but I'm hoping to get better as we go along. I'm not great at this one-shot thing, but I'm definitely liking it thus far. Feels thoroughly less stressful. I fullfilled your request to the best of my ability Emerald Commander. I hope you enjoyed what I wrote. :)** _


	3. Snapshot 2: Mako Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shepard and Tali find themselves stranded on Rayingri during a mission. Whistling is somehow involved.

**_This one is for an unnamed guest. I don't know if this was inspired by Noveria Heat or not, but either way I chose to go down a different route than that story. So enjoy!_ **

* * *

  
On a lone planet, in a lone star system, in a little tiny corner of a galaxy known as the Milky Way, a war brewed. A war for all life as they knew it, even though they didn't know that yet. A war between a rogue Spectre agent and the first human Spectre. A war that was small in execution, but great in scope. Only one man could save the galaxy from its ostensible annihilation. Only one man stepped up to the plate. His name was Commander Shepard.

  
But right now, he couldn't even save a M35 Mako.

  
"Bosh'tet!" a quarian, a young pilgrim, cursed at his side, giving up as she slammed her dainty little fingers against the console infront of her, completely fed up, "Its no good! That siege pulse fried the entire engine!"

  
He sighed, feeling his helmeted head lean against his hand in exasperation. They had gotten themselves into...quite...the situation. It had been a simple mission: Admiral Hackett had informed the _Normandy_ of a geth presence in the Armstrong cluster, and they'd been sent to clear out the pockets of geth resistance in that area before they could establish any permanent base of operations. Simple enough: they had racked up quite the body count when it came to geth, so his squad were no strangers to battling the relentless synthetics.

  
They had gone from world to world, taking out outpost after outpost. He had only taken one squadmate with him for each battle, given that most of it was conducted within the M35 Mako, their infantry fighting vehicle equipped with a multi-role anti-infantry/anti-vehicle weapon. If it wasn't for the vehicle's poor handling, Shepard may have just liked it: its firepower made it a powerhouse, its heavy machine gun tearing through geth troopers like they were cardboard, while the main cannon hit geth primes and armatures like they were shattering glass. Suffice to say, it had more than enough punch to bring the geth to their knees.

  
Now they had deployed on Rayingri, supposedly the last of the geth outposts, and it was Tali's turn to assist him. He knew her tech abilities were second to none on his squad, which made her a no brainer to bring along. They had gotten off to a good start, all things considered.

  
Until they came across the first geth armature.

  
It had been his standard _modus operandi_ to use the Mako's full frontal armor to ram the geth, pinning it to the ground temporarily before reversing and using the main gun to finish it off. It was a good tactic that worked most of the time, but either the geth were learning or this one had gotten lucky. More like, _struck gold_.

  
Instead of using its machine gun to pepper them first like it usually did, the armature had elected to charge up and fire its siege pulse instead. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, as the Mako's kinetic barriers could absorb the impact of at least two siege pulse blasts before being breached.

  
However, the Mako had been rather unfortunate in that it had been cresting a hill when the pulse hit...right when its belly was completely exposed.

  
And where the barriers were weakest.

  
The Mako had dropped like a rock, its shock absorbers taking the brunt of the impact as it landed back on its six wheels like a sack of bricks impacting concrete: Shepard and Tali's bodies jerked and trembled underneath their armor and suit respectively as they were temporarily jostled around, before finally coming to rest. The nature of the damage wasn't even completely aware to them at first, Shepard simply manning the gun and putting the armature down before it could take full advantage of its opportunity.

  
They had only noticed an issue when Shepard hit the acellerator, only to hear a violent cough and deathly silence screech in response. He had immediately abandoned that idea.  
And thus Tali had quickly run her systems diagnostic, only to announce what they already knew: the Mako was dead in the water.

  
 _Fantastic_.

  
He quickly reached up and pulled down the vehicle's built-in comms system, hailing the _Normandy_. He tried once, twice, even three times...each time resulted in the same loud _beep_ , a red blinking light flaring at him as if to chastize him for his multiple attempts at a failed escape strategy.

  
_Great, so we must be in range of the geth outpost. And they have a signal jammer, which means we can't call for help. This is just getting better and better._

  
Tali leaned back, hands folding in her lap as she began to wring them, her nervous posture taking shape, "Shepard...what do we do?"

  
He sighed, leaning back in his seat as he stared at the primary console infront of him. Data assaulted his retinas, but he didn't acknowledge any of it. He knew what it meant: the Mako's primary engine was toast, meaning it would need at least a couple of days worth of repairs before it was operational again, and the main comms system for the vehicle was being actively jammed by the geth, which left them with no way to contact the _Normandy_ in orbit. They were stuck with two options.

  
Wait here, or proceed on foot. Just the two of them. Against an entire geth outpost. He didn't particularly like their odds in that situation.

  
Nope, it looked like they were stuck here until they could receive backup. Not an idea with a ton of merit, but it seemed they had no other options.

  
He turned to the quarian at his side, shrugging his armoured shoulders, "We're not going anywhere with the Mako anytime soon, and we can't contact the _Normandy_. We're just going to have to wait it out."

  
The quarian's eyes turned into slits behind her visor, cocking her head. Her hands stopped their movement, a trait he found adorable but never brought up with the young pilgrim, "You mean...just sit here?"

  
He nodded, standing up as he headed towards the back compartment of the vehicle, grunting as his armor creaked with the strain, the human having to bend over tightly due to the incredibly low ceiling of the tank's interior. He squeezed past Tali's seat, before reaching up to flick a switch on the ceiling. A light lit up the darkened compartment, the black and blue of the bulkheads becoming more apparent with the new lighting. He sighed as he sunk himself into one of the seats at the back usually reserved for infantry, unholstering his rifle before letting it rest on his lap.

  
He turned to her, noticing she had twisted in her seat to watch him. He met her eyes, finding himself able to sink his gaze past the smoky exterior of her mask and, for the briefest of moments, imagining her face looking at him with a frown of dubiousness. Unable to picture what she looked like, he amusingly pictured her with a human face. Somehow that made it easier to imagine her shock at his attitude, "Yep, we just sit here. Unless you can fix this vehicle?"

  
Tali groaned, twisting back around in her seat as she crossed her arms angrily, sinking into her seat, "Well...if I had Garrus and some extra resources, I could easily get the engine running at least..."

  
He smiled, wiping the expression as he removed his helmet and sat it next to him, sinking back into the uncomfortable seat he sat upon. His back ached from the crooked position he had adopted, so instead he sat back up, groaning in annoyance as grabbed his rifle and stood it up, hugging it between his armoured legs, "And we're short on both. So I guess we're stuck."

  
"Keelah, must we just... _sit_ here!?" the quarian cried out petulantly, kicking a foot against the console infront of her, "I feel like we should be....should be...damn it, something! We should be doing _something_!"

  
He chuckled, despite knowing that what the quarian needed was reassurance, not him laughing in the face of their stranding, "I'm open to ideas, Tali."

  
He looked at her, raising a single eyebrow as he crossed his arms, cocking his head at her comically as he awaited an answer.

  
She turned to him slightly, head dipped, before mumbling her response, sighing.

  
He nodded, turning back to the wall across from him as he began to whistle. A single tune popped into his head, his lips pursing as his voice echoed the musical note that his mind had already conjured up. He closed his eyes as the tune filled the compartment, boot idly tapping.

  
A few moments passed as he heard a shuffling nearby. He ignored it for the moment, escaping inside his own little world as he tried to think of anything but their current quandary.

  
Then Tali's soft voice broke his thoughts, as it always seemed to do when she spoke, "That's a nice tune."

  
He pried his eyes open, finding Tali now sitting directly across from him, having sat down opposite him. Her arched back and backward-facing legs made it an awkward fit for her to sit in the seats designed for human marines to sit in, but she made the most of it. Her hands rested firmly in her lap, soft blue eyes regarding his with a cool, but calming, respite.

  
_Such a nice voice...and eyes...those damn eyes..._

  
Having forgotten himself, he pushed those musings to the back of his head as he smiled, scratching his cheek as he purged a growing itch, "Yeah."

  
She lowered her head slightly, as if not knowing where to go. She seemed a bit flustered, the situation they were in likely terrifying her as the realization grew on her that they may be stuck here for a while. And as her Commander, he needed to keep up morale. And most of all, he felt a need to reassure her. A need that went beyond the usual military obligation to one's troops. In the brief time he had known her, barely a month and a half, he had listened to her tell tales of her life in the Migrant Fleet, what the geth did to her people, and how society worked among the quarian people. They spent entire nights just sitting down in engineering during the late night shift, when the rest of the engineering crew had retired to their bunks and the room was manned by a skeleton crew, just talking. He'd bring down his dinner and she'd nurse a nutrient paste while they sat side by side.

  
She wasn't just a soldier under his command. She was a friend. Someone he felt responsible for.

  
Seeing her nervous movement, he elaborated, shifting in his seat as he leaned forward, uncrossing his arms and resting them on his legs, "Its a little tune I heard my gunnery sergeant humming back during boot camp. He used to do it when he thought his platoon wasn't listening...heard it often enough that it became trapped in my head. Been humming it ever since...helps me release stress."

Tali gave a light titter, shaking her head, "Of all the things...you whistle to relieve your stress? To make yourself feel better?"

  
He fixed her with a gentle stare, before laughing, "Yeah...I whistle. Your great and dashing Commander, your savior...and he whistles. I hope I haven't killed anymore of your impressions of me?"

  
This only caused the quarian to giggle a little more, a hand reaching up to her visor as she rested her helmet on the small, three-fingered hand, "Well, you're still dashing..."

She froze. He froze. They looked at each other. They both blinked, realizing what she had said.

  
They both turned away at the same moment, Shepard's cheeks flushing slightly, although he tried his best to hide it. Tali stuttered, noticing the red rushing to his cheeks, "I-I did-didn't...I didn't mean it that way....I mean, I did, but not in the way you think. I mean that you're very handso-...oh keelah, that's worse. I mean, objectively speaking, you're a perfect human male...damn it...I...um...oh keelah..."

  
He turned to her, barely holding back a warm smile at her stuttering. _Good grief, could she be anymore adorable?_

  
He reached out without thinking, placing a hand on her thigh, causing her to stop immediately as she gauged this new development. Despite knowing what he was doing was a bit presumptuous, he held his appendage there for a few moments, five fingers grasping her leg as he smirked calmingly at her, "Its okay, Tali. I know what you meant. I'm irresistable. You and every other woman has probably told me that at this point."

  
She nodded, barely choking out an answer, "Yeah...I guess..."

  
It didn't take a genius for him to realize what was making her uncomfortable, so he pulled his hand back, releasing his grip on her leg and leaning back.

  
He could have sworn he saw her sag slightly as he pulled away...almost as if she hadn't wanted him to retract his hand.

  
He tossed that thought aside. _She's just worried. Come to think of it...we should probably get ontop of that and do something._

  
Desperate to find a way to disspell the awkward atmosphere that was now beginning to hang over the two of them, he cleared his throat, the sudden sound causing Tali to visibly jump in her seat. Having her attention, he motioned to the hatch, grabbing his rifle, "Get your shotgun out. We're walking."

  
She seemed puzzled at that, but wordlessly followed his orders, pulling out her shotgun from the small of her back. As she stood up though, she turned to him, finding herself needing to ask a question that had gone unasked, "What are we doing, Shepard? We're not going to walk to the outpost, are we? We don't have the firepower."

  
He shook his head, grabbing onto one of the ceiling handles to pull himself up as he gripped his rifle in his opposite hand, "Nope, but we are going to walk in the opposite direction, see if we can get out of range of the geth's jamming signal so we can call for pickup. See if we can't just bomb the damn thing from orbit."

  
As he reached for the hatch to pry it open, the quarian behind him started, rubbing her helmeted chin, "Wait...if we could do that the whole time, then why didn't we?"

  
"Do what?"

  
"Bomb it from orbit."

  
He turned to her, a response prepared on his lips.

Until he realized he had none.

  
"Ahhh....well you see..." he grasped for a logical solution to the quarian's query, but quickly concluded that he really didn't have one, "You know what, that's a very good point."

  
"Keelah..." she sighed, chuckling slightly to herself, "So this entire endeavor was a waste of time?"

  
"Probably," he grinned mischeviously, hitting the button for the hatch to snap open. It shot open like a pair of scissors, the hatch pulled upwards. A blast of heat slammed into him, warming him through his armor instantly. He gritted his teeth through the barren temperature and jumped out, landing moments later with his rifle primed against his shoulder. Tali wasn't far behind, her quarian legs flexing as she landed in a spring-like stance, before rearing her shotgun. He turned to her, still grinning as he slotted his helmet back over his face, the clasps clipping back into place as the heat now battered the protective covering instead of his face, "But then we wouldn't have had the chance for this team-building exercise!"

  
Tali just snorted, shaking her head incredulously, "And what an exercise its been, Shepard! I've learnt how-not to get stuck on a planet, and the fact that my human commander whistles to relieve his stress."

  
He sighed exaggeratively, tsking with dramatic flair as he pretended to be annoyed, "Is it really so hard to believe that your Commander can whistle?"

  
"Well...no," she said genuinely, "Although I'm not sure how you do it."

  
"You don't know how to whistle?" he asked, the two of them beginning a gradual pace as they headed up towards a hill, in the opposite direction to the geth outpost they were supposed to be neutralizing. Hopefully they'd find it soon, because this heat was quite intense, the red sky of Rayingri looking almost bloody in coloration.

  
"Should I?" she asked quizically.

  
He stopped for a moment, turning towards her as he wiggled his eyebrows, "Give it your best shot."

  
She almost ran into him, not expecting him to stop so suddenly. Startled by his larger form suddenly being stationary infront of her, she almost leapt back, before reganining her composure and straightening, one eyebrow raised behind her visor, "What?"

  
He shrugged, leaning on one hip as he waited, "Go ahead. I promise I won't laugh."

  
"I don't even know how to!"

  
He pressed his lips together, letting out a shrill keen as an example, "Just like that. Wet your lips and pucker them. Open your mouth slightly, press your tongue on the roof of your mouth. And then...well, just blow whatever air you can out of your mouth while keeping it relatively closed," he whistled again as an example. He turned to her expectantly, the quarian looking unsure of herself, "Go on...you can do it. Give it a try."

  
She sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat, before she gave in. A few moments passed as she likely performed his preparatory procedures behind the safety of her visor. A moment later, and a low mewl came from her vocalizer, so low he could barely hear it.

  
He frowned.

  
Noticing this, she tried again. This time, much louder. The sound was like a strangled cat gasping on its last breath: nowhere near the melodic tune he had managed to replicate with his own lips.

And despite his promise...he laughed. No, he _wheezed_.

  
"Bosh'tet," she whimpered, rubbing her thigh awkwardly as he imagined her cheeks flushing with embarassment, "You promised you wouldn't laugh..."

  
"I know. But...but I...oh jesus..." he continued to dry heeve as laughter wracked his frame, squeezing his lungs as every iota of oxygen within them was swept out to accomodate his mirth. Every laugh brought on a new gasp for air, yet he couldn't, and wouldn't, stop. He just kept laughing, eyes firmly shut as he continued to guffaw, "That...the sound you made...it sounded like...it was...oh my _god_...!"

  
"I..." she began, but quickly shook off her response, realizing her human commander was a lost cause. Commander Shepard, first human Spectre, was currently too lost in his laughter to really pay attention, "...keelah, you're insufferable. All you do is make fun of me for trying to whistle, which you suggested by the way."

  
Finally bringing his laughter under control, he slapped his thigh before composing himself, the only thing remaining behind his broad smile. He noticed Tali wither slightly from her anger as she saw it, although he didn't really pay much attention to the action, "I'm sorry, Tali. Its just...that...what you did was...really cute."

  
"Well...um..." she stumbled for a clever retort, but found that she was completely clueless.

  
"Come on," he muttered, shaking his head as he turned back to crest the hill, "We should probably get going. _Normandy_ 's probably wondering where we got off to."  
He heard Tali follow behind him, the crunch and squelch of her boots on the crusty planetary floor indicating her quiet ascent, "Lead the way, Shepard."

* * *

  
**_I'm actually happier with how this one-shot turned out than the last one. I don't know the name of the person who suggested this, but you know who you are, so here you go. I hope you enjoyed it. :)_ **

  
**_Keelah Re'lai, troopers!_ **


	4. Snapshot 3: Dismiss THIS Claim

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tali gives the Council a lesson in humility.

_**This one is for the guest Harvey Dent. Due to how you worded your request, it was a bit difficult to ascertain exactly what you wanted from this, but I think I managed to put together something to your liking. Enjoy!** _

* * *

  
There were a plethora of things that changed throughout the course of the Reaper War, and just their exploits against the Reapers in general, but it seemed the Council Chambers, and on a greater scale the Citadel itself, never changed at all. The serenity, the peace of mind, the total tranquility the station represented...it seemed nothing could snuff that out. It remained a steadfast reminder of what the galaxy once was, and what it could still be when this was all over.

  
Very few quarians had ever had the priviledge to even enter the Council Chambers. Three hundred years ago and before, Tali imagined many quarians had walked through these chambers, soaking up the feeling of safety and order those chambers represented. But in the centuries following the Morning War, the sight of a quarian here was astonishing, if not unheard of.

  
But Admiral Tali'Zorah vas Normandy was a special case.

  
It wasn't like this was her first time being here. She had been present when John had provided her evidence before the Council, the same evidence that then led to Saren Arterius, one of the Council's greatest agents, being labelled a traitor. She had felt immense awe and pride in that moment, knowing that just moments before she had been fearing for her life, running from a dangerous operative who would stop at nothing to keep her silent, only to suddenly find herself in the employ of a human naval commander. Her life had changed significantly that day.

  
For the better, she would always think.

  
Perhaps this was her first time entering the Council Chambers...as a new woman. Tali'Zorah nar Rayya and Tali'Zorah vas Normandy weren't the same people...not really. That girl had been naive, scared and barely able to hold herself together. She had been filled with hopes and aspirations, and had foolishly believed the propaganda her people had fed to her about the geth. She had the shadow of her father looming over her, dictating how she lived her life. It had made her feel small, insignificant.

  
But being on Shepard's team changed her in ways she couldn't have possibly thought possible. In two years, she had become a seasoned military combatant, an expert combat engineer and a confident, strong woman: strong enough that she had finally admitted her feelings to the man she had thought dead for years, and to be rewarded with reciprocation of those feelings. And now she was an admiral, a position she never thought she'd reach.

  
No, this was her first time here. As a completely different person.

  
As she confidently strode through the Council Chambers towards the podium at the back, she turned to acknowledge the other two people currently accompanying her, one of them walking infront of her in onyx black armor with the crimson red stripes of an N7, while the turian beside her just wore his usual cobalt blue attire.

  
Shepard and Garrus were her best friends. Not just that...she considered them to be like family. Garrus, while an insufferable turian sometimes, treated her like a little sister, and she watched his back in kind during battle, the close-quarters nature of her shotgun and tech skills making her an excellent compliment to his long-range marksmanship. And both of them would follow Shepard into hell and back, even if it risked potential death. He considered them his most loyal friends...they had his back when nobody else did. They weren't just a team. They were far more than that.

  
And for Shepard and Tali...well...they were soulmates.

  
As they walked, she made sure to reach over and squeeze his hand, her smaller three-fingered appendage interlocking with his larger, five-fingered hand reassuringly. He spared her a quick smile, but it carried all the warmth she needed to sustain herself. She smiled back, even though he couldn't see it, and released his hand, letting it fall back into the back and forth motion of her strolling as they continued to walk to their destination.

  
The three of them were going to fight the one enemy they couldn't kill or defeat with bullets. The Citadel Council.

  
It was probably a bit unfair to call them 'an enemy', as they were officially supposed to be allies. But considering just how many times the galaxy had nearly been doomed due to their stupidity and arrogance (and in all honesty, the current state of the war effort was partly, if not entirely, the Council's fault in the first place), one had to wonder if they were truly the 'allies' they were marketting them as. Certainly didn't seem like it.

  
They had recently returned from the war on Rannoch and had been summoned to provide a debrief of what happened. Overall, they had all been lucky in the end result: the quarians and the geth made peace and joined forces, joining the galaxy's united effort in fighting the Reapers and, mostly importantly of all, lending their respective scientists and engineers to help construct the Crucible: the doomsday weapon designed to end the Reapers once and for all. Tali had been giddy for days afterwards, hardly believing it all: she finally had a place to call home, and when this war was over, she planned to retire there and build a house.

  
Well, Shepard would build her the house. Or so he promised.

  
Unfortunately, their joy had been put on pause when the Council had practically demanded an audience with Shepard. Apparently they weren't too 'thrilled' with the quarians going to war with the geth in the first place, and despite the peace reached between them, they were quite adamant about getting answers...answers that apparently Shepard and Shepard only had.

  
_I mean, they aren't wrong...invading geth space while we're in the middle of a war with the Reapers was a pretty stupid idea...but at least it ended peacefully. Why continue to focus on something that's already happened? Its not like the aftermath could have ended any better, honestly._

  
But, the Council was the Council. And Shepard was a Spectre. He was duty bound to answer to them.

  
Shepard and Tali were both creatures of duty and patriotism. They would lay down their lives for their people, they were uncompromising in their beliefs, and they were an immovable force when their minds were made up. Duty always came first, and even if they hated what it made them do, they did it anyway. That's just who they were. And it just made Tali love him even more.

  
The Council was already in session when they arrived, so they had to wait patiently at the bottom of the steps. As usual, Valern was positioned on the far right, while Tevos was in the middle and Sparatus on the far left: a symbol of the power play. The asari were essentially the leaders of the galaxy and the most advanced species, so of course they were in the middle. All three of them stood tall and proud, backs straightened and hands clasped behind their backs as they silently nodded and provided curt replies to the enquiries brought before them. But all of them looked more tired than usual, like the meetings themselves were so numerous and so lengthy that they were physically draining them of energy, sapping them for all they were worth.

  
The Council was in constant session during the Reaper War. That probably explained why they looked like they hadn't had much sleep. Any of them.

  
Once their latest session concluded, which seemed to have been over krogan territorial rights if the krogan that was leaving with a tight smile was any indication, Shepard ascended to the podium, Tali and Garrus not far behind him. They stopped just a few inches behind where he did: right at the front of the extended bridge, where the Council stood posed over them, like royalty imposing judgment on the lesser subjects below them.

  
Shepard's hands clasped behind his back as he straightened it, fixing his eyes directly on Tevos, as she was the center of the political trio. Tali and Garrus just maintained silent vigilance behind him, hands at their sides as they let their presence do the talking.

  
Tevos' voice was tired and broken, sounding like the croaky rasp of someone who was borderline losing their voice, her omni-tool voice amplifier likely the only reason anyone could hear her to begin with, "Commander Shepard, you've been brought here today to discuss the recent war between the quarians and the geth. As we come to understand it, you've ended a war that was three centuries in the making. An admirable achievement."

  
Valern nodded, but his arms crossed, "First the genophage, now this. Are you quite finished rewriting history?"

  
Shepard was quick, hitting back with an acerbic viscosity that he always seemed to be able to pull off: almost like he had the answers to every question on standby, ready and rearing to go, "I'll rewrite it as often as possible, councilor, especially if it ends with everybody happy. And from what I've heard, curing the genophage has seen quite the appreciation back on Mannovai. I hear the krogan are helping reinforce the planet. Funny how old greviances are forgotten when you let a little forgiveness in. After all, it was a _salarian_ who cured it."

  
"Indeed," Valern replied curtly. He did not elaborate any further. Being former STG, he had more reason than most to disapprove of the genophage being cured, but obviously he wasn't going to make a big speel of it.

  
"The genophage, however, is not the purpose of this meeting," Sparatus piped up, shooting a noticeable glare in Tali's direction, "The rather reckless actions of the Migrant Fleet, however, are. We thought you might be able to shed some light on this issue."

  
Shepard shrugged non-chalantly, "Admittedly, the quarians were rather foolish in instigating a war with the geth, but that's in the past. What matters is the war is now over and the geth and quarians are enjoying the first days of peace between their peoples. Their focus will now be united and pointed at the Reapers. Seems like a massive win for the galaxy at large."

  
"Perhaps," Sparatus drawled, clearly not satisfied with the answer as his glare turned to Shepard, "We, however, at the Council know all about rash decisions. We made the same mistake with uplifting the krogan and attacking your exploration teams at Relay 314 without warning or provocation. Such reckless actions cost thousands, if not millions, of lives in the long run. I would think the quarians are deserving of punishment for this."

  
Shepard was silent, regarding the turian councilor with a quiet analysis. Tali felt her jaw slacken slightly as she looked up incredulously at the turian, his eyes unflinching and boring directly back into Shepard's skull. Even Garrus gave a start at that comment, but elected to follow Shepard's lead and remain silent.

  
"I would think the Exodus was punishment enough, councilor," Shepard replied succintly, leaving no room for no debate on where he stood.

  
"Apparently not," Sparatus spat, waving a dismissive hand, "We gave the Migrant Fleet explicit instructions not to provoke the geth. And they did it anyway. And from what I hear, there may be violations of the Treaty of Farixen to consider...turning liveships into dreadnoughts?"

  
Shepard just raised an eyebrow at that, "And you'd have me do what, councilor? Tell them off, give them a slap on the wrist? We're at war, councilor, and from what I remember, the Treaty of Farixen was suspended under wartime emergency provisions to encourage military buildup, so that's no longer applicable. And they provoked the geth...so what? It hardly matters now. The war between them is over."

  
"The ends do not justify the means, in this case," Tevos added, cutting off Sparatus' next snappy response, "And quite frankly Commander, I'm surprised you would endorse such an opinion. Regardless of what has occurred, we cannot overlook such blatant violations. The Treaty of Farixen, while suspended now, was still in effect when the quarians began their rearmament: retrospectively, we cannot legally ignore this. As such, this will incur harsh penalties, even during wartime."

  
Valern nodded, dropping the hammer, "As we are at war with the Reapers, we cannot land sanctions at this time that would otherwise inhibit morale and the war effort. However, we will, effective immediately, bar any attempts at establishing a quarian-geth embassy until such matters are addressed. The Salarian Union, Turian Hierarchy and the Asari Republics will also not provide logistical support to Rannoch as was requested. With our supply lines already stretched thin, it would be foolhardy and unjust to provide support to a planet owned by a species so blatantly unabiding of our laws."

  
"Councilors, may I jus-" Shepard began, but Sparatus swiftly cut him off, apparently having had enough.

  
"Do not insult us any further with your pandering, Commander Shepard," the councilor rasped, almost sagging against his pedestal from a combination of exhaustion and his sudden outburst, "Consider these sanctions light punishment for the violations committed. Were this peacetime, we'd have any quarian-geth alliance state on Rannoch declared illegitimate and barred from sovereign status. Let me make this perfectly clear: the Council will not stand for this. You may think because you saved our lives and that you were right about the Reaper threat that we will simply take you on your word from now on, but that will never be the case."

  
Without thinking, Tali stepped forth, next to Shepard, and pointed an accusatory finger at the turian, the appendage shaking with a growing anger, "You'll _watch_ who you're _speaking to_ , councilor!"

  
The action shocked Tali as much as it did every once else. Sparatus turned slowly to acknowledge her for a second, as if offended by the very idea that she was addressing him. Tevos and Valern looked at her rather lazily, while Shepard and Garrus gave her a wide-eyed stare of amazement: Shepard because he hadn't expected her to say that, and Garrus because of how one of his best friends had just chosen to but heads with the _Citadel Council_.

  
"Excuse me?" Sparatus almost demanded, mandibles twitching with irritation.

  
_How dare he treat John that way. After all he's done, after all he's sacrificed, after all he's done for this galaxy...he has the audacity to stand there and accuse him of pandering? Of calling him a manipulator?_

  
Tali didn't try to stop the words that left her mouth now, her body becoming more animated as she stepped infront of Shepard, her _saera_ stepping back with Garrus as he watched the quarian speak in his defense, "You have no right, _none_ , to stand there and _judge him_ when all you've done is endanger this galaxy!"

  
"Now wait just a min-" Tevos began to speak, but the quarian whirled on her in an instant, waving an arm through the air to verbally cut her off.

  
"John tried to warn you about the Reaper threat three years ago. _Three_. You ignored him then, pretended to acknowledge him until he died, and then you brushed him under the rug and forgot...again. And then when the Reapers arrive, all you have to say is 'oops, our mistake'. You're all a bunch of _bosh'tets_. Hypocritical, self-absorbed, self-deserving _det kazuats_."

  
Tevos was old enough to know exactly what the quarian had meant, and her eyes widened, glaring down at the quarian admiral, "You have no right to speak to us in this manner! You're out of line!"

  
"I have _every_ right!" Tali snapped, gripping the railing in front of her, "I've fought, bled and almost died for this cause! I've fought geth, krogan, mercenaries, Collectors, the Shadow Broker's private army, Cerberus commandos, rachni, the Reapers...enemies you couldn't even _imagine_. As a quarian, I have more to risk than anyone in this room. So I know the score. I know exactly what we're up against," she pointed a finger at all three of them, waving it across in a line to indicate to all of them, "I tried my very best to stop the war with the geth, I really did. And you know what? It doesn't matter what happened then, the next day, or even the week after...because two weeks later, the war was over, and my people were back on the homeworld, with the geth as allies, more powerful than ever."

  
"But you violated-" Valern began, but she wasn't giving any of them a chance to overrule her.

  
"Yes, we _violated_ the Treaty of Farixen. We _violated_ our agreement to not provoke the geth," Tali hissed, "But if we spent this war focusing on wrongs we committed in the past, none of the alliances we made so far would be possible. Humanity would still be bickering with the batarians, the krogan would still want to kill every salarian and turian in sight, and my people would still want to hunt the geth to total extinction. We made mistakes, but they're in the past now, and right now, we need to concentrate on the future. And insulting the one man who has done everything he can, sacrificed everything he could and shed what blood he has to protect this galaxy from the Reapers does more of a disservice, more of a _violation_ , to your ethical standards that its disrespectful. I suggest you get a grip councilors, because quite frankly, you're acting like _children_."

  
There was silence in the room after her passionate speech, and to their credit, none of the Council members offered immediate responses. She heard Garrus mutter something behind her, while a hand rose up and grabbed her shoulder gently, squeezing it. She smiled under her mask as she reached up and grasped it with her own, patting it lightly as it let go. He was letting her know how much he appreciated her standing up for him.

  
_You got me a homeworld, John, now let me defend you from this pack of hypocrites._

  
A few moments later and, after some deliberation between the three of them, and to their everlasting shock, including Tali's, Sparatus spoke with a voice of self-disdain and regret, "We apologize, Commander, for our actions. Admiral Zorah was correct in that our conduct was entirely unacceptable. Its often easy to forget that we are all in this together."

  
Her job done, Tali stepped back from the podium, Shepard stepping forth to take her place, but not before shooting her a warm grin. But it wasn't just his usual grin: there was a glint in his eyes, the smile seeming to tug to the left in a way that exhibited immense joy. No, immense _pride_.

  
She felt butterflies in her stomach, her spirits souring as she stood just a bit straighter at seeing how proud he was of her.

  
_Definitely not that meek little quarian I was all those years ago..._

  
"That's okay, councilors," Shepard spoke, dropping his grin so as to not seem smug, "This war is taking its toll on all of us, some more than others. While I don't condone the quarians going to war with the geth, what matters is the situation was resolved amicably and with little cost to the war effort. And with their support, we're one step closer to winning this."

  
_And another step closer to having you build my house. **Our** house._

  
"Of course, Commander. And thank you Admiral Zorah," Tevos concluded, turning to the quarian with a weak smile, "We have not forgotten your words and will head them well. May the Goddess watch over you all. This meeting is adjourned."

  
"Keelah se'lai, councilor," she responded in kind as the three councilors walked away. Dismissed, the trio headed down the podium back into the chamber's atrium, descending down the steps with little urgency.

  
Once at the bottom, Garrus just chuckled, "Spirits, Tali, I've never seen you so riled up like that. Talking down the _Council_? Add that to your list of achievements."

  
She shrugged, her altruism shining through as she rubbed the back of her neck, "It was nothing...really. I just didn't like how they were talking about John..." she shot him a smile, one he quietly returned in kind as she grabbed her hand, fingers slipping inbetween hers in a comforting embrace, "...I guess you could just say John rubbed off on me."

  
Shepard laughed, even as Tali stepped closer to him, pressing her hip into his as they stood side by side, "You liked watching me shout?"

  
"Yep. Thought I'd give it a try."

  
He sighed, hand that had been holding hers releasing it to snake around her waist, pulling her further into him as he nuzzled his forehead against her visor, staring into her eyes, "Wouldn't mind making _you_ shout later on..."

  
"Ooohhhh..." she purred in response, "...you have more politicians for me to shout at?"

  
His smile only widened, "Oh, I think I had a different kind of shouting in mind..."

  
A flanged voice cleared their throat, and the pair of them, annoyed, reluctantly turned to look at the subject in question, the look of discomfort on their face clear as day.

  
"Oh, Garrus. I forgot you were there," Shepard stated with an awful American accent. He failed miserably, but at least the turian wasn't able to tell the difference. His _Tombstone_ reference would fall on deaf ears, it seemed.

  
"Evidently," he quipped, shaking his head, "You two are shameless."

  
The two of them parted for the sake of the turian's comfort, their third-wheeling reluctantly concluded, but his arm remaining around her waist with a comfortable grasp. Tali just smiled, her arms crossed, "I think Garrus is just jealous because I'm the one who shouted down the Council, not him."

  
The turian opened his mouth to form a witty remark but, for once, found none.

  
In the end, he just shrugged, "I...actually can't argue that," desperate to change the subject from his merciless defeat, he turned and headed back the way they came, motioning to his omni-tool, "We've still got a few hours to kill while the _Normandy_ gets restocked. You two up for some drinks at Purgatory? Might be able to catch Jack if we hurry up."

  
They sighed, Tali and Shepard looking into each other's eyes one last time. She appreciated the look of pride in them: the pride he felt for his quarian girlfriend who had stood up to the Citadel Council and shouted them down in the defense of her mate. Of her _saera_. Something he had done for her back during her trial, and something she had just paid back in full.

  
"Sounds great," Shepard responded, finally pulling away from her to follow Garrus, "Come on Tali, might as well down a few poisons. I hope you can keep up." He wriggled his eyebrows at her, the suggestion clear as day.

  
She just placed one hand on her hip, her voice playful, "Keelah John, are you getting me drunk just to take _advantage_ of me?"

  
He held his heart mockingly as he bent over, pretending to have been shot, "Who, _me_? How scandalous!" the two of them just laughed, before he extended an arm out to her, offering his hand to hers. She took it without thinking, smiling the entire time as he continued, "Come on Miss vas Normandy, time to let our hair down. Captain's orders."

  
She just continued to smile dumbly, letting him guide her away. Her anchor. Her immovable rock.

  
Her soulmate.

  
"Lead the way, captain," she cooed, "I'm as free as dust on the solar wind."

* * *

  
_**Like I said, not entirely what you wanted, but the premise is the same: Tali gave her opinion on the Council. All in all, I think that was the longest one-shot I've done so far. Let's see where we go with the next one!** _


End file.
